The Night Time Fear
by GwenCooper92
Summary: When a twisted Unsub causes havoc in Conneticut the BAU are called in to help. With the bodies piling up its a race against time to stop him, but that's easier said than done when the focus of the Unsub shifts onto them, and one member in particular. Slow burning Derek/Emily. Team Fic with focus on Emily.
1. The Night Time Fear

**So this is my first Criminal Minds Fic. Ever. So I apologize in advance if it's shabby, putting all the terminology and stuff will probably trip me up somewhere down the line but I will try my utmost for this to appeal to everyone and get the characters as they should be. So without further ado…**

_"Life imitates Art far more than Art imitates Life" – Oscar Wilde._

"Okay so we have four murders in three nights down in Conneticut!" JJ began as she stood at the front of the bullpen; remote in her hand as she flicked through the case files that were up on the projector screen. The other's sat around the table in the bull pen looking at hard copies of the folders.

"They're all completely different circumstances" She continued onwards and clicked a button moving it onto the first murder. "The first murder was of a young man named Jack Hartman, 19 years old now he was found hanging from a meat hook in an old abandoned warehouse just outside of Windsor. No signs of torture or anything, a quick clean kill the police there believe".

"I wouldn't call being strung up by your neck by a meat hook a quick kill!" Morgan sighed as he scanned the images in front of him. As JJ had said there were no signs of the boy being tortured except for an angry gash to the back of his head.

"You're telling me" Emily agreed taking a sip from her coffee before looking at JJ and nodding urging her to continue with her pitch.

"The second was of 22 year old Lynsey Williams. She was found stabbed to death in the bedroom of her home. She was found by her parents a few hours after she was murdered. She had been stripped naked and posed on the floor but no sign of sexual assault" JJ carried on looking between the group.

Garcia visibly cringed as she looked at them. No matter how many different photos or scenario's she saw day in day out she was always horrified at how man could act to one another. The brutality of their species. "Now the third which took place last night was a double murder. Emma Davidson, 23 years of age and her boyfriend Max Barnes 25 who live in Hartford. Max was tied up to a chair out the back garden and had been stabbed repeatedly causing extreme damage to his torso whilst Emma was found hanging from a tree not too far away practically disembowelled. She too had been stabbed repeatedly. Both were covered in bruises showing that there were signs of a struggle and the house was in disarray. No witnesses at all. It seemed no one heard or saw a thing. The murders took place in the early hours of the morning and they lived just outside of the town in a quiet area" JJ plowed on scrolling through the next set of crime scene photos.

"So what's the connection?" Rossi asked looking at JJ. "Turn to the next page in the file" She said and they all complied and turned to the next page. "At every crime scene these letters were found near the bodies, it seems the Unsub has a signature".

"BW was scrawled in blood at the first scene. MM was found on the wall next to Lynsey's body and then GF was found on the patio window of the last scene. Now four murders in three nights seem to indicate that there's more than likely going to be another tonight, that's why Conneticut PD have called us in" She finished sitting down at the table finally.

"So each murder was in a different location. The first seems to be an easy kill, the boy was subdued with a blow to the back of the head before being impaled through the neck by a meat hook. The second, young woman home alone having been stabbed to death. Naked but no sexual assault, so the killer doesn't seem to want sexual gratification and she was posed. Then the third was a double murder with extreme overkill. It's hard to imagine that this is one killer, even with the letters at each crime scene" Morgan sighed his eyes scanning the folder intently.

"Maybe. Or it could be one killer, one killer with multiple personality disorder. Each kill is a different personality of the Unsub?" Hotch spoke up giving a quick gaze to each member of his team. Everyone nodded bar Emily who's face was scrunched up in deep concentration. Something didn't fit. All three murders seemed familiar to her. Like something she had seen before. She held the photo's in her hand and studied them intently. Meat hook. Stabbing. Strung up from a tree. BW. MM. GF, She raced over every thought trying to piece it all together.

"Whoever the Unsub is looks like their escalating. The first three victims weren't very imposing. Average height and build. Max Barnes was a big man who kept himself in shape. Muscular, athletic. He's getting adept at killing" Rossi pitched in. "Also by the looks of the first murder he didn't know what he was doing. He just wanted to kill. Compared to the most recent he's being more flashy about it all!".

"The Unsub is killing fast as well. There's no sign that he's going to slow down any time yet" Morgan added as they spread all the photos across the table.

"What makes you think it's a man?" JJ asked curiously. They needed to get every theory, every hypothesis out there before they even travelled to Conneticut.

"Physically a woman wouldn't have been able to restrain Max Barnes the way he had been" Rossi spoke up and JJ nodded agreeing with his logic.

"And his kills are different. So he's unpredictable, we don't know what he's going to do next so narrowing down purchased weapons or predicting his next move is going to be hard" Emily groaned rubbing the back of her neck tiredly. Everything was so confusing, and she couldn't shake the feeling that she had seen those murders before.

"Okay then. Garcia I need you to run their backgrounds, find out every single thing you can about these victims. Good and bad moments, everything they've done, everywhere they'd been the last few weeks" Hotch ordered and Garcia nodded and got to her feet grabbing a hold of her laptop.

"On it Sir" She said and exited the room hurriedly knowing that the faster she got background on them the faster the team could build a profile on the victims.

"Okay as soon as we get off the plane JJ and I will go straight to the police station and find out what we know, we'll then head on over to the first scene. Rossi and Reid I want you to go to the second crime scene and meet with the officers on the scene. Morgan and Prentiss you two can take the third. Wheels up in 30" Hotch ordered and exited the bullpen to retrieve his go bag. Everyone began to filter out of the bullpen bar Prentiss who was still studying the case files.

Morgan noticed that she hadn't moved from her chair and perched himself on the table next to her. "What you thinking about Princess?" He asked kindly peering down at his partner.

Emily shrugged and closed the file dropping it in front of her. "I don't even know" She groaned leaning back in her chair. "I'm sure I've seen these murders before somewhere, and the initials seem familiar somewhat" She spoke up looking up at the man who always had her back.

He nodded and placed a large hand on her shoulder and she welcomed the comfort off of him, as little as it was. She couldn't help but notice the change in their relationship recently, being as she was a profiler. Ever since she returned to the BAU after the whole Doyle incident, something had changed them. They stood a little closer together, they partnered up together hell of a lot more recently. They were invading each other's personal bubble with fleeting touches and glances. To say they didn't spend most of their time together was an understatement. Ever since she had returned to the BAU, and especially after that dance they shared at JJ and Will's wedding things had most definitely changed.

"We've seen so many murders and I'm not surprised there's a resemblance. Come on, let's go get a coffee before we hit the plane yeah?" Morgan said kindly easing her up out of the chair. She nodded and gathered up her folders and the two left the bullpen missing the strange glances the rest of the team were giving them.

**0o0o0o0o0o**

"Man it always looks even worse in person" Morgan sighed pulling off his sunglasses and scanning the patio. Prentiss was knelt down next to the body studying the wounds.

"Oh yeah. This was extreme overkill, this was violent. As if he was pouring all of his rage into Max Barnes" She spoke up taking note of the chair he was still tied to. Rigor had begun to set in and she felt sorry for the coroner who was getting his stuff together, he was going to have a hard time straightening the body out. She then flicked a glance up at the body of Emma Davidson who was swinging from the tree due to the light breeze blowing through the area. Emily shook her head as she looked at the once pretty youngster. "And the way he's hung her up, is it a taunt, is he showing her off?" She questioned loudly to Morgan who was looking at the initials written in blood on the patio.

"I don't know. But I definitely think it's a message of sorts, like we said earlier this is certainly a lot more flashy than the other murders… It wouldn't surprise me if he did that to her to brag about his kills?" Morgan answered thoughtfully watching as Emily walked over to him to look at the initials as well.

"Right so let's run the scene!" Emily spoke up walking back into the house and to the front door, Morgan on her heels. "There's no forced entry, which means he must have gotten in another way and had been hiding somewhere. There's scuff marks on the inside of this door" She spoke pointing at the straight indentations along the inside as if a knife had been dragged along the wood. "Now his first thing is to nullify the biggest threat which in this case was Barnes" She continued on looking around at the scene. Everything was trashed but there was no blood in this area of the house.

"Looking around I think Emma was waiting for Max to come over. The shower was still warm when the police arrived and the tubs still wet, so what if the boyfriend comes in whilst she's showering, so she doesn't know he's arrived. The killer comes out of the cupboard and subdues him" Morgan continued on catching where Emily was going with it.

"Exactly. Slight scuff marks on floor by here, which look like drag marks. So he drags him around the back" She said following the easy route from the front to the patio. "He ties him to the chair, ducktaping his mouth, arms and feet so he is completely helpless. He then proceeds to stab him multiple times and leaves him there for the girlfriend to see. He comes back into the house ready for Emma. She comes down the stairs, wondering where her boyfriend could be, and as anyone would do rings his phone" She continued completely lost in the scene. She walked over to the phone which lay only a few feet away from the poor man. "She hears it ringing and goes to have look around the back and finds Max dead. Panicking she tries to run but the killer makes his move and this is where the struggle ensues" Emily said pointing to the trashed furniture and slight droplets of blood that covered the place.

"She gets the upper-hand and runs out of the patio doors trying to escape" Morgan finished for her as the two walked passed Max's body and following the trail.

"He catches her and stabs her a few times here" Emily spoke up once again pointing at the large blood pool right on the edge of the concrete slabbing. "But she keeps dragging herself away from him, but she's injured and no match for him. Now it's just a matter of whether he killed her and strung her up, or did it whilst she was alive" Emily finished and shuddered slightly.

"How did he know that there was a couple there? Was he watching them? How would he have the time to watch them when he'd killed two nights in a row?" Morgan questioned, glad that they seemed to have managed to come up with a plausible scenario but frustrated by the lack of intelligence they had on the man.

"Better get in touch with Garcia, she can see if they went to the same places, similar transactions" Emily said and Morgan nodded instantly flipping open his phone. After only one ring the voice that always made him smile reached his ears.

"Your glamour puss speaking, what can I do for you my hot piece of chocolate" She grinned fingers at the ready to do some more digging.

"Babygirl could you see if the victims had any kind of connection between them and also check phone records, incoming and outgoing calls" He asked kindly and he could already hear her begin typing furiously.

"No problem superman, I'll get it back to you as soon as I get something!" She replied already beginning to pull up every record imaginable.

"Thanks PG!" He said before flipping his phone shut and walking back over to Emily who was staring at the initials.

"So we've got a rough estimation of what went down here, and he's certainly got a thirst for killing that's for sure. And if he's getting more violent, then I can't even think about what he's going to do next" Emily sighed looking down at the ground once more.

"Tell me about it. The initials have nothing to do with any of the victims, not even close. So what do they stand for?" Morgan put out as the two continued to bounce theories off each other. It just didn't make sense. Any of it.

"We'll just have to wait and see won't we. Let's head back to the station, see if the others have anything" Emily said standing to full height and walking away. Something still didn't sit right with her, that familiarity followed her like a plague.

But that wasn't the only thing that followed them. Sat in a small car just down the road was a figure cloaked in dark colours watching the scene in utter amusement a camera in his hands. Things were getting better and better everyday. Checking their watch a low laugh escaped the culprit and turning on the engine he drove off. It was time to get ready for the next act.

**0o0o0o0o0o**

**So first chapter down. It's pretty simple really what the pattern is following and I've dropped a lot of clues for you all. Again this is my first Criminal Minds fic so you'll all have to bear with me guys, even though I'm watching CM as I write it's ridiculous keeping up with the countless terminology. So I'm just going with the flow.**

**So I hope you like it, and if so drop me a line and give me your thoughts, they will be very much appreciated.**

**Thanks again guys,**

**Gwen.**


	2. It's The Disease Of The Age

**Here's the next installment for you all. I want to say thank you so much for the positive feedback I've recieved after just one chapter. You guys are absolutely amazing!. I tried to get back to a few of you!**

**Without further ado...**

"So the only thing that's consistent is the messages left. Other than that his Victimology is all wrong" Rossi sighed as the BAU regrouped at the Police station. The sun had set which meant that the next murder would more than likely happen within the next few hours.

"And that's what makes him dangerous, he's killing for thrills, now that he's started he can't stop and his kills seem to be escalating" Reid chipped in his eyes still scanning the map on the large board. There was a considerable distance between each area and no pattern from what he could see but getting between them within an hour or two was very possible. "I've tried to isolate locations where he could be coming from, and the most likely place is anywhere in this radius" He said circling a large portion of the map between each murder.

"Okay we'll get a heavier police presence around that area" Hotch said looking through more of the folders in front of him. "What have we learnt from the post mortem on each of the victims?" He asked turning to look at Rossi and Reid who went to the second crime scene.

"Lynsey was stabbed 26 times, but she didn't die quickly. She bled out on the floor and died within a few minutes. So the killer hung around, waiting for her to die before posing her on her back, legs crossed but arms out beside her" Rossi spoke up as they all looked at the photo of the pretty youngster in front of them.

"Emma and Max weren't killed at the same time. Max was killed first judging by the time of death and he too bled out from his wounds. Stabbed 15 times in the upper body. Emma had been stabbed repeatedly and was still alive when she was hung up to the tree, even with her stab wounds counting up to 18 times and the fact she too was bleeding out it was asphyxiation that killed her due to the rope around her neck. She would have been too weak to do anything to prevent it" Emily said recounting what the coroner had told her and Morgan.

"Me and Prentiss believe that he killed Max Barnes first to eliminate the serious threat. So we think he's not the strongest of people, strong enough to lift a young girl who was barely a hundred pounds but not strong enough to take on a man who was more muscle than bone. The drag marks from the front door around to the back were prominent, so he struggled with the man's weight" Morgan added on and Hotch and JJ nodded, glad that they were building some kind of physical profile.

"Good work guys" Hotch nodded, pleased by their thorough analysis of the scene. Though he was never surprised by it anymore. Putting the two of them together was the best thing he did, they were a perfect team, no matter what situation and he hadn't questioned their logic nor skills, he didn't need to.

"What did you get from your scene?" Emily asked and JJ began to speak recounting what they learnt from theirs.

"Not much at all. Jack Hartman's body had already been removed almost a day ago but the scene hadn't been touched since. There was nothing. The only thing we got from there was that the door to the warehouse had been jimmied, so he didn't have a key meaning it probably wasn't a place that he was too familiar with. The coroner confirmed that it was a quick kill, the hook severed the carotid artery killing him almost instantly" JJ said giving her recount. "The Detectives out there are still trawling through the CCTV to see if we can find out how he managed to lure the kid into the place".

As they spoke the conference phone in front of them buzzed and Hotch answered knowing who it would be. "Hello my very own crime fighters, I've got what you've asked from me" Penelope sang down the phone and the group came and huddled around the table hearing what she had to say.

"What have you got us Garcia?".

"Okay first things for my terrific twosome Emily and Derek, I looked through everything I could, social lives, where they eat, where they work and I got Zilch. But there is one thing they all have in common, and I believe that this technical genius here had found out how he first met his victims. In the last two weeks all three of the house owners had problems with their home landlines, and each one of them had been in touch with the same repair company to come and fix it, DW Repairs" Garcia spoke urgently down the phone and Reid jotted it down quickly on the pad in front of them.

"Have you got staff records?" Hotch asked down the phone.

"That's where things get weird. When I looked up who worked for them there was nothing, no trace of a human being there, and it's not even a legitimate company. It has no records, nothing, just a crappy name" She finished with a sigh as she nibbled at her pen anxiously awaiting her next orders.

"Strange" Rossi mused leaning back in his chair. "Looks like he was freelancing then, posing as a legitimate company to gain access into their houses. So it explains how he met them, but not how he continually knew where they were, who they were with" He continued and the others absorbed his words.

"Also lovelies the victims from the last murders had some weird phonecalls before they were killed, and I mean literally just before. Three of the calls last around 5 seconds but the last one lasted around five minutes. And before you say it yes I tried to trace the call but the number is unrecognisable and literally untraceable. I'll keep trying though" She added on making sure to give them everything she could.

"Okay thanks baby girl, keep on digging" Morgan said and Garcia clicked hang up instantly going back to work.

"So we know how he got access to his victims, posing as a repairman. But how could he keep an eye on them, all three of them enough to know where they would be" Reid spoke his face scrunched up as he thought extremely hard about it all. He was getting frustrated by how confusing the killer was.

Emily was sat silently as Reid's words rang in her ears. _How could he be watching them?. He meets them through fixing their phones… Fixing their phones_. At that moment and idea popped into her head and leaned forward quickly, startling JJ who was sat next to her.

"What if he wasn't watching them?. What if he was listening to them. Think about it, he goes in to fix their phones, whilst doing it he messes around with the thing and places a bug into the line. He doesn't need to see them because he can hear everything their saying" Emily spoke loudly and the others nodded in appreciation.

"And to anyone who doesn't know a lot about phones it would be unrecognisable, they'd have no idea whatsoever" JJ spoke a slight smile on her face as she nudged her friend. Finally they were getting somewhere, all thanks to Emily's quick thinking.

"It's the perfect way to spy on them whilst he's doing something else, stick in some headphones and he can hear every plan they make, what they're cooking" Reid said jumping up to his feet and going back to his board. "He's got to be in this area somewhere for him to reach potential customers or in his case victims, he must have a van or something reasonably big for the tools and cables, I know it's a stretch but we may have to ask the Detectives to look for a van that is spotted in the area at the time of each murder." Reid said and Hotch nodded in agreement.

"It's not much but it's a start, now we're getting somewhere" Hotch said closing the file and standing up. "We'll have to brief everyone out there on what we have". Hotch said and the group began to put together the profile on who this man would be.

**0o0o0o0o0o**

"You're looking for a white male between the ages of 25 an 40" Rossi said standing before the entire precinct his colleagues by his side.

"He'll more than likely be in repairman uniform. Tools on his belt a hat on his head and driving a van or large truck. He's also not going to be physically imposing, thin and quite wiry" Emily said stepping forward as she took over from Rossi.

Seamlessly Morgan began to speak. "If he has been bugging the phone's then he's tech savvy, so he probably knows his way around electronics and more than likely he'll be socially awkward, he's not good interacting with people hence why he's using their phones to track them and not himself".

"Have a look around the City centre and check out any hardware stores that would sell the necessary items to commit these acts, that's all for now we'll get back to you when we find out more" Hotch ordered and obediently the officers began filtering out and getting to their tasks given to them.

"Okay I'll ask Detective Jones to send a few of his officers around to the crime scenes to collect the phones. Reid I know its late but we don't have anytime to waste. I want you to go to Lynsey's parents house and Rossi I want you to go to Jack Hartman parents house and talk to them. Try and work out why he'd be out that deep into town at that hour. Morgan and Prentiss I want you to join up with the Detectives and scour the area, you'll be able to help the officers know what they're looking for. JJ I want you to set up a press conference, encourage anyone who has had contact with DW Repairs to come forward and give us descriptions and anything that could help with the investigation" Hotch ordered in his usual brisk tone and the group dispersed.

Morgan and Prentiss made their way out of the police station and opened the back of the SUV pulling out their FBI vests and chucking them on. Quickly they chucked in their ear pieces and grabbed their weapons holstering them to their sides before the two jumped into the large vehicle. Detective Jones had already sent the co-ordinates to the GPS, so all they had to do was join up with the primary team.

The two drove in a comfortable silence both doing their silent inwardly recon. As Morgan drove through the quiet streets he snuck a glance at Prentiss who was looking out of the side window her forehead scrunched up. He knew that look well, the _'combing through every piece of evidence'_ look which had been stuck on her face since the investigation had started that very morning. He knew something was bugging her. Trying to lighten the mood a little he found his voice. "I still can't believe they took the radio's out of these SUV's, could do with some music seems as we're probably gonna be driving around for the next few hours" He smiled and finally she looked away from the window a small smile playing on her lips.

"My voice annoying you?" She smirked back shifting her position.

"Princess you know your voice is music to my ears, but you've been silent for the last twenty minutes" He said softly eyes flicking between her and the road.

She was glad he was looking back at the road as he wouldn't notice the pink hue that crept up her neck at his words. Before Doyle his flirty comments never fazed her and she took them with a pinch of salt but now she couldn't help but want him to say them more. "Sorry" She said finding her voice as she composed herself. "This is just weird, I've said it once and I'll say it again I've seen these killings somewhere" She spoke up and he nodded, thinking that was what was bugging her.

"I get you Prentiss, but don't overthink it too much just yet" He reassured as they pulled up to where a group of officers were sat on the hood of the police cars. Emily was about to get out when Derek put his hand on her forearm, preventing her movements. "Don't worry Princess, we'll get this sorted and hopefully that little thing that's nagging you is nothing okay" He cooed softly and she smiled back at him, grateful for the reassurance and patting his hand gently she hopped out of the car, the place where his hand had been was practically scolding her skin. Rubbing it quickly shook all thoughts of it out of her head, now wasn't the time for this, she had work to do. So falling into step with her closest friend they briefed the officers on all they should know.

**0o0o0o0o0o**

The Unsub was sat in his van a smile on his blood soaked face. The thrill he had felt from this kill was through the roof, and the sound, oh the sweet sound of her screams and the angry sound of the chainsaw as it sawed through her bones was amazing.

He ripped off his gloves and dropped them beside him before picking up the small video camera he stored in the glove compartment. Turning it on he flicked backwards, passed the recent video, he'd save that for later, and finally he came to the one he wanted. Clicking play he was well and truly mesmerized as his eyes stuck to the raven haired Agent that prowled around the crime scene an air of confidence surrounding her.

He couldn't believe his luck, she was a spitting image of her. It was fate, it had to be. He was nearly done being someone else, copying his kills. He was nearly ready now, ready to be his own killer, and he'd be as infamous as the ones he had re-enacted. It was nearly time for the real show to begin.

And with a smirk he shut the camera and started up the engine. Yes he was nearly there, and now he had his cast, and SSA Emily Prentiss was the star.

**0o0o0o0o0o**

The two had been driving around for an hour now, their trained eyes looking for the van but so far they had seen nothing, the roads were quiet, deserted. "Ughh this sucks" Emily grumbled sipping at her coffee. "I hate this waiting around, I feel useless!".

"Tell me about it" Derek groaned as well. They'd been in constant contact with the rest of the team and had discovered that all of the phones had been bugged, but the victims families had been unable to shed light on anything, so they had hit a dead end down that route.

But they had gotten some good news, they'd been given a visual on a medium sized white van which had been spotted near every crime scene. They'd run the plates but they came up empty, proving what they had suspected. Prentiss and Morgan had linked up with the officers briefly and handed them photos of the van which they had picked up from the station, so at least they had something to go on.

Emily was about to speak but the shrill ringing of her phone cut it short. Flipping the phone open she put it on speaker. "Yeah JJ?" She said hearing her friend's voice and instantly picked up on the panicked tone.

"Emily we've just got a call, a young man saying he's found a young woman dead. 116 Pinewood Lane" JJ said quickly and she heard Morgan turn on the siren that came with the SUV's.

"Okay thanks JJ we've got this" Emily said and was about to hang up but JJ's voice stopped her.

"Be careful, you'll be first on the scene and we've lost touch with the man who called it in. Reinforcements are on their way!" She said wanting to make sure her friends were aware of the situation, she knew how dangerous it was going in blind.

"Will do" She said before hanging up the phone and slipping it in her pocket. Derek put his foot down, they were only a few minutes out from the area and if there was a chance that this guy was there they were going to take it. "You think this is him?" She asked Morgan who was completely focused on the road.

"The chances of it not are real low Prentiss" Derek groaned. Sure he had wanted his night to pick up, but not because someone had been killed. He watched as she readied her gun, holding it in her hand, her grip strong. She was ready for this bastard, and even though he wanted to keep her safe, to wrap her up in cotton wool he knew he would never be able to, she was stubborn and bull headed and he wouldn't have wanted anyone else by his side.

Within minutes they pulled up outside of the house and the two jumped out, holding their guns in front of them. Looking around there was no one there, the house was half a mile up a rural road and there was no vehicles bar theirs. The two hurried up the garden path towards the front door which was hanging off its hinges.

They hurried through the doors flicking on their flashlights. The house was in entire darkness. Emily motioned that she would check the upstairs whilst he scanned the downstairs. He was hesitant about them splitting up, he hated doing it these days but sucking it up he knew it was necessary. He cleared the downstairs reasonably quickly but was startled as he spotted a figure huddled in the corner.

"FBI!" He called out and pointed the flashlight at the young boy, who had have been still in his teens who was curled up in a ball in the corner a small dog in his lap. He noticed the strewn phone on the floor next to him.

"D-don't hurt m-me" The boy trembled his entire body quaking. Derek walked over to him and put his gun down to his side.

"It's okay Kid!" Derek reassured instantly knowing that this wasn't the Unsub. "Are you the one who called the police?" He asked and the boy nodded trying to catch his breath. "Can you tell me where the body is?" He asked once again and the boy pointed at the stairs. Derek nodded thankfully. "Okay stay here, I won't be long okay" Derek said with a soft tone as he turned and made his way up the stairs.

His gut churned as he realised he hadn't heard anything from Prentiss since they had split. "Emily?" He called out his gun out directly in front of him. He waited with baited breath for her reply and couldn't help but breath out in relief as he heard her voice.

"In here" She said and when he rounded the corner the first thing he could see was blood soaking all the walls. Walking down the hallway Emily walked out of the room her face void of any colour and her face hard. Her gun was holstered so he put his back on his hip knowing that she must have cleared upstairs.

Hesitantly he walked into the room she had just vacated and his stomach turned in sickness. Shaking his head he couldn't believe what he could see. Body parts were scattered all over the room and there wasn't one surface that didn't have blood on the walls. An arm on the bed, a leg on the windowsill and a head posed on top of the large tv in the corner of the room. And there written boldly in blood initials on the wall. **LF**. Shuddering he walked out hearing the police sirens nearing and seeing the familiar red and blue lights flash through the window.

"If we thought he was escalating before then this is to a whole other level" Emily managed to get out as she rested on the bannister. She was good at compartmentalizing things, but the shock of walking in on what she had shook her more than had wanted it to.

"Jesus" Morgan spoke shaking his head. Putting his hand on her shoulder he guided her down the stairs away from the carnage. Walking past the officers he tilted his head towards the stairs. "I hope you have a strong stomach" Was all he said before a group made their way up to the scene.

"What the hell is happening Morgan? Who is this guy?" Emily asked shaking the images of that woman's head out of her mind but that was much easier said than done.

"I don't know Em" Morgan shook his head sadly as they exited the house. "I really don't know".

**0o0o0o0o0o**

**So chapter two lovelies. Have you all caught on yet, I hope so. If not a lot will be revealed in the coming chapters. Now this isn't going to be a super long story, because I'm trying to structure it like an episode, fast paced, information filled etcetera. But I really do hope you're enjoying reading it as much as I am writing it.**

**Please let me know how you feel, reviews are like hugs, and I love cwtches.**

**So until next time friends!.**

**Gwen.**


	3. The Crash

**So here's the next chapter my pretties. I know my chapters aren't overly long like my other stories, but if you drag it out too much sometimes I feel that people can lose interest, and we don't want that to happen now do we. I am a firm believer of quality over quantity.**

**So things are seriously hotting up now. Now it's getting intense and the BAU aren't getting away unscathed.**

**A big thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favourited and followed this story. I'll try and get back to you all with your questions.**

**So without further ado…**

Emily was sat in the makeshift office they had created at police station. Still she couldn't get the horrible image of that poor woman's head out of her mind. She'd expected him to step up his MO, but not even she had thought he would go to those extremes. JJ's voice snapped her out of her musings and she turned to look at her blonde headed friend.

"We've got an ID on the latest victim. Rebecca Warburton, 27 years old. She was born and raised in that house, inherited it when her parents died in a car crash five years ago" JJ spoke sitting down opposite Emily as they waited for the others to arrive. Emily nodded at her and took the file off of JJ. Opening it the first thing she saw once again was the head.

"How many murders have we seen over the years? And yet I don't think I've seen one as gruesome as this" Emily said blankly, compartmentalizing the incident. She couldn't let it get to her, she wouldn't let it get to her. Flipping through the folder, ignoring the pictures and going straight to the background information Garcia had managed to dig out on her.

"Couldn't agree more" JJ spoke scanning Emily intently. She could see that Emily's steel walls had been brought up. Which could only mean that this case was getting to her and she'd noticed it since she had given them the case 24 hours ago. She thought back to when she first met her and began to get to know her, when they all believed she had come off of a desk job. She dealt with everything in a crisp and clean professional manner, and dealt with what they saw better than most. Better than them even.

Then they found out about Doyle, about Emily's shady past. She was a trained spy, trained to kill and trained to be someone she wasn't. That's why she was dubbed the queen of compartmentalizing by the other members of the BAU. She just pretended to be someone else. But something had changed within her best friend. Ever since she had returned, ever since she had risen from the dead she lost herself a little more in cases, and as soon as she felt that, those walls that barricaded her emotions would fly up in an instant. "JJ you're staring at me, please stop" Emily said not even looking up from the folder.

"Sorry" JJ cringed not knowing how the hell Emily could have known that she'd been watching her.

"It's alright" She spoke still scanning the contents of the folder. Pulling up another one she laid out all the photos from the murders in front of her as well as the initials. It was looking more and more familiar every-time she looked at them. She was close to something, she knew she was. Rossi, Hotch, Reid and Morgan entered the room and parked themselves down. "What have we got?".

"I spoke to the boy who found the body. Bobby Benton, 15, he'd had an argument with his parents so took the dog for a walk to get away from them for a bit. He was walking up the same way he always does and could see the door hanging off it's hinges. So he went to take a look to see if Rebecca Warburton was okay, said he always spoke to her and was a lovely girl. He went into the house and found her body, then rang us" Rossi said informing his family of what he'd learnt of the severely traumatised boy.

"And he didn't see anyone drive away, or heard anything?" Emily asked and Rossi shook his head.

"Nope, it was completely silent".

"Damn" Morgan groaned. This guy was like a ghost, no one knew who he was.

Hotch clicked dial on his phone and placed it on speaker. "Yes my super troopers what do you need?" Garcia's bubbly voice resonated through the speaker.

"Do you have anymore leads on DW Repairs?" Hotch asked strongly hearing her fingers hit at the keyboard hard and fast.

"Nothing Sir. I've got nothing on the number he used to ring Emma Davidson and Max Barnes either. Not even I can tell you how he got his phone to bounce of so many different satellites across the world, it's really quite incredible" Garcia spoke a hint of envy in her voice. She didn't like it when these sickos were nearly as tech savvy as her. "But, once again I have found a similar white van, with different plates coming down the intersection just off of where Rebecca Warburton lived so it's him most definitely" She finished continuing her scan of the net.

"Okay thanks Garcia, I'll let you know if we need anything else" Hotch thanked quickly before hanging up and looking at his team. "Okay then. This latest murder is brutal, he's gone from stabbing someone to death to cutting them into bits. I don't think he'll be able to escalate anymore unless it's a group massacre, so we have to be prepared for something different. We literally have nothing on this man, so we just have to keep out eyes peeled. Our best hope right now is people coming forward with descriptions of him and a clear catch of his van. Morgan, Prentiss, Reid and JJ I want you four to go back to the latest scene. It'll be good to have two pairs of fresh eyes to take in the place and you two can guide them through what you got from the place. Rossi me and you have got to keep getting this profile sorted" Hotch ordered once again and as usual, like the well-oiled machine that they were everyone immediately jumped to their tasks. All but one.

Emily was glued to her seat as everything began to piece together. "WAIT!" She called beckoning them back into the room. Everyone came in eyebrows raised wondering what she was getting at. Her entire frame was stiff with tension and her eyes were literally stuck to the photos in front of her. "I knew I'd seen these killings before!" She said jumping up so fast she nearly knocked Spencer over. Grabbing the pen she walked over to the whiteboard.

"Prentiss?" Hotch questioned as she scribbled onto the board.

"Look at the first murder, boy killed by a meat hook and the initials **BW**. This is a trademark kill from the film **'I know what you did last summer'**. He kills his victims with a fishing hook and the name of the killer, **Ben Willis. BW**. Now you move onto the second one, girl stabbed to death, stripped naked, this is the first killing from the** 'Halloween'** films. And the killer in those is **Michael Myers, MM**" She continued writing it all down. She was on a roll now and nothing could stop her. "The third double murder, that's the opening scene from the **'Scream'** films, boyfriend tied to a patio and girlfriend strung up to a tree after being violently murdered, the killer in those is **Ghostface** or as we see **GF**. Also in that before the killer strikes he phones them, and taunts them. And the final one is pretty obvious and I should have spotted this earlier, chainsaw and the initials **LF. Leatherface**, he's re-creating iconic moments from horror films" She finished and the other's were looking at her in literal awe.

"We've got our link" Hotch said coming back over to the table. "We need to re-work the profile a bit. Obviously he's a big horror film buff, which will make him more reclusive, these films are old, he must have grown up watching them, I'll get Garcia to have a look for youngsters in the nineties, early noughties that were arrested for violent conduct, animal killings" Hotch added on drawing his phone once again getting ready to call Garcia.

"We said he was escalating, if this is the pattern then there is literally nowhere more graphic he could go to. We thought he was going to do a drastic change, I think he's done with remakes. He's going to start making his own movie" Emily surmised dropping the pen. She felt a thousand times better already. She knew there was something else.

"Good work Emily" Rossi said a supportive smile on his lips. If anyone could have cracked this and seen the link it would have been her. She just nodded at him and gathered her stuff together.

"Let's hit that crime scene, see if we can find something that ties in with these films" Morgan said walking out, the other three on his tail.

"Is that what's been eating at you all day?" JJ asked falling into step with her friend. Finally they were getting somewhere, they knew the link, they knew a bit more, they expanded on the profile. Finally they were moving forward with the case.

Emily nodded. "Yeah, I knew I'd seen these killings somewhere. I just couldn't put my finger on it, but when I saw the last scene it was as if he was putting on a show. Put two and two together and now we know we've got a horror film obsessed nut who's probably planning out his next act" She grimaced wondering what his next move would be.

They fell into silence but the small reprieve as they made their way to the SUV was broken as Reid began to speak, spouting his facts as they were accustomed to.

"Did you know that chainsaw attacks are one of the lowest causes of deaths in the United States" Reid began spouting off as the four made their way out of the precinct. "Most of the deaths are caused accidentally, blades that haven't been put on right, not having enough body mass to contain the weight and power of the chainsaw" He continued and Emily and Derek looked at each and shook their heads laughing lightly. Reid and his facts.

"Nice to know Spence" JJ grinned patting his shoulder affectionately. "So guys tell me just how bad this scene really is?" JJ asked wanting to know what they were walking into, _hell at least we get the luxury_ she mumbled inwardly.

"A hundred times worse than the photos, but hopefully if they've removed the woman's remains then it'll just be a room covered in blood" Emily reassured buckling herself into the front next to Morgan, Spencer and JJ jumping into the back.

"If it's any consolation, the amount of blood she would have lost after the initial attack then she probably wouldn't have felt it and died relatively quickly. She would have been in so much pain the endorphins running from her brain would have gone into overload, shutting down everything she didn't need to ease her pain" Spencer said sadly as he thought of the woman. He hoped that the facts applied to her, he wouldn't want anyone to suffer like that.

"That's comforting" Emily mumbled running a hand through her hair as they made their way towards the house which was around ten minutes out. They were so preoccupied with talking that they had completely missed the medium sized white truck that had turned off on one of the side roads behind them, vanishing from sight.

"I can't believe you got all that in there Prentiss, is Reid corrupting you. He's the king of pulling things off of the top of his head" Derek laughed lightly once again lightening the atmosphere in the car. Finally they had something solid to work with. The other's laughed at his words bar Reid who was just sat in his own world.

"He does it straight away, It took me twenty four hours!" Emily sighed sending a look at Reid who had come back into the conversation a smile on his face.

"You don't give yourself enough credit Emily, the only difference with us is I'm basically a proven genius" He said a small snigger in his voice as he spoke. Emily looked at him and rolled her eyes and the other's let out another laugh.

"Okay kid" Derek smiled his gaze flicking between the road and the raven haired woman to his right. He shouldn't have thought that they wouldn't have found link, with her around. Reid was the mindboggling genius who found everything in the details, JJ was the woman who could see from the outside in. Hotch was straight and direct and got the job done with ridiculous ease, Rossi did what was needed and Emily, well Emily was simply amazing. She could piece anything together, she could truly see into the mind of these killers and find what made them tick and it was that which usually unlocked these cases. And once again she had done it. She turned to look at him and caught his eye sending him a sheepish glance with a hint of a smile playing on her lips. He gave her one of his dazzling ones, one that didn't go unnoticed in the back by JJ who couldn't help but smile slightly. Spencer as usual when it came to emotional signals didn't even pick up on the gesture.

"Hey Reid. You saying I'm not a genius. Way to make a girl feel good about herself" Emily laughed turning her head to look at the youngest member of the group.

"That's not what I'm saying" He began not noticing the playful tone and JJ clamped a hand over his mouth stopping him before he could start. "It's a joke Reid, it's just a joke" Emily laughed turning back to look at the road.

"Oh… I didn't get it" He spoke up fiddling with the Ipad in his hand.

"For a genius you ain't half clueless sometimes are you" Derek chuckled heartily his eyes now planted firmly on the road. This stretch was narrow and there was an embankment that sloped right up against the side of the road. He drove along it being cautious of where he was going, it was this stretch that had slowed his and Emily's effort to get to the house. Emily… His mind wandered back to her but he shook those thoughts away. They were unprofessional, and he had a job to do, people to save, so those selfish and treacherous thoughts would just have to wait for all this to be over. He didn't know what he felt for the woman, only that it was something far more than just friendship.

"So let's run this, we've got a killer copying iconic film moments who's probably ready to make the leap to his own style. He knows how to kill, how to cover his tracks and he's unpredictable" Emily spoke looking around at the two behind her.

"And that's the most dangerous thing about him. I'm not happy that we may have to wait till someone else dies to nail his ass to the wall" JJ spoke up thinking about who they were dealing. Which would be a lot easier if they knew.

"Hopefully we'll get something soon, with the new information Emily's got us then the chances of this case bringing us more are extremely high" Spencer chipped in as he continued to fiddle with the Ipad. "He eviscerated Emma Davidson, which is commonly substituted for some sort of sexual release, but he had the patience to strip Lynsey and pose her but there was no sexual assault. His victimology and the way he's killing is all over the place, yet it's also organized" Reid added on looking between the group.

"His philia is horror films, he's been so submerged in them that he wants to make his own, he wants to feel what he sees on screen. It's obvious he's idolizing these specific film killers, they mean something to him" Emily chipped in readjusting herself in her seat.

"From the off out the threat assessment was high. This guy is impossible to read, until we get background on him there is nothing more we can add to the profile" JJ sighed unimpressed by things. Their cases were never straight forward but they were also never as confusing as this. The Unsub was a complete contradiction.

"We'll get something. We have to" Emily said strongly pushing that Prentiss power into her voice. She was determined to get justice for these people.

In the white van the man was waiting for the car to go past. Now was their first test, were they strong enough to survive. Was SSA Prentiss worthy to be his final girl. If she survived then she would most definitely be, but if she didn't then he'd have to settle for one of the others. He'd done his research on the BAU, and they were truly a force to be reckoned with. _But then again_ he mused inwardly starting up the engine as he saw large headlights come around the bend, _so was he_.

"How far out are we?" JJ asked as she placed her stuff in her bag.

"About five minutes, the house is literally just up this-" Emily spoke but stopped when a loud roaring hit her ears. Turning her head she just about managed to catch a glimpe of a white van barrelling down towards them before she was blinded by the headlights. And before she could even do a thing the car slammed into her side of the vehicle, the metal buckling. That was the last thing she saw before her head smashed against the window as her entire world plunged into darkness.

The force of the car hitting them knocked the car off the side of the embankment and rolled continuously down it, the car fracturing apart as it smashed to pieces. Finally the car managed to come to a stop at the bottom of the steep slope. And as smoke filtered out from the vehicle that was on its side there was no sign of life resonating from the SUV.

**Cliffhanger for you all. I told you things were getting nasty. So who will get out of this unscathed. So as you've discovered he's completely barking and things are finally starting to make sense, the way he's been killing etc.**

**For those who don't know what a 'final girl' is then it's basically in horror films, 'Scream' as a perfect example it's always the last woman standing aka Sidney Prescott. The one the story moves around, we still haven't established why he wants Prentiss to be his final girl but he's got her in his sights and that was her first test. Also he needs a supporting cast who need to be culled in order to get her alone, so that was killing two birds with one stone.**

**Hope I've cleared that up for you friends. I really do hope you're still enjoying this, because I certainly am. You'll be doing me a massive favour by giving me feedback, this story is for you guys, and if you're not enjoying it as much as you should then I need to know what I'm doing wrong or right.**

**So thanks again guys, next chapter will be up soon.**

**Gwen.**


	4. Summertime Sadness

**Sorry for the wait on this one, life has been hectic beyond belief!. A big thank you to my ever faithful reviewers, you give the motivation and the muse to keep running with this insane idea. You're the best!.**

**20waffles20 - Yes that is my real name, though I tend to use my middle name as my first aha. Yes I know, my family are good friends with Eve Myles's family (THEGWENCOOPER) and it's something we have a good laugh over. Oh a fellow Torchwood lover, I am pleased! Thank you for your kind review friend, hope you enjoy this one.**

**So here's the next chapter for you beautiful people. Time to check out the aftermath of that nasty crash.**

**Here we go…**

Derek let out a loud groan. The first thing he registered was pain. Lots and lots of pain. His breath was caught in his chest and opening his eyes was a hard task but finally he managed to wrench them open. And he honestly wish he hadn't as the pain intensified ten fold. Everything around him blurred into one and he struggled to get his bearings but after a minute of repeated blinking everything started to even out. But he wished he hadn't been able to open his eyes, because all around him was pure carnage. The windscreen was no more, all that was left was a tiny slit where the large opening had once been, it had been crushed together on top of the bonnet.

Finally he realised why he was struggling to catch his breath. He was dangling from his chair, the seatbelt being the only thing that was stopping him from crushing Emily._ Emily…_ Remembering what happened he turned his head quickly to get a look at her. "Emily!?" He called out getting a faint glimpse of her still form. "Emily?!" He called with more urgency this time but still there was no response.

"Derek" A weak but familiar voice called out and turning his body around he managed to catch sight of Spencer grabbing a hold of the door tightly. Blood slipped down the side of his face and he could tell the man was dazed but he was awake and talking and he took that as a good sign.

"You alright Kid?" He asked hoisting himself up and around using his seatbelt as a makeshift hammock to hold his weight. The movement hurt like hell but he had to work out what was happening, how hurt they all were and how to get out.

"Yeah… I think" Spencer got out his head swaying dangerously from side to side as he tried to keep his eyes open. The pain in his skull was almost unbearable. "JJ?" He asked shaking away the haze. Looking at his blonde companion he noticed that she too was unmoving, her body pressed against the twisted metal and the muddy ground. "Emily?" He shouted painfully looking at the front but he got the same response that he had from JJ. Nothing.

"Okay Reid. We need to get out of the car, climb through your window there" Derek ordered going straight into leader mode. Spencer hesitated but wrapped his gangly arms around the outside of the door, the grooves giving him somewhere to cling on to. "Okay I'm gonna lean around and unclip your belt" Derek said stretching around to the back of the SUV his side screaming in pain. Sucking it up his fingertips just about reached and unclicking the belt he watched Spencer's body drop slightly before the man gathered himself and crawled out of the car. "Call the police and get an ambulance down here!" He ordered and Spencer yanked his phone out of his pocket. Thankfully it wasn't very damaged bar a cracked screen.

Derek shifted his position once again as a faint moan reached his ears. "Emily?!" He said turning to look down at woman who began to stir ever so slightly. His heart beat harder than ever, she was waking up. She wasn't dead, she hadn't left him again. Relief flooded his body as he managed to get his feet on the ground below, avoiding stepping on Prentiss. "Emily can you hear me?" He asked managing to kneel down in the slight space that he had in the crushed car. Her face was covered in blood and he could see the angry cut that ran from her forehead and into her hairline. Her face was littered with the little cuts as fragments of glass nestled themselves into her flesh. But what worried him the most was the small pool of blood that came from just underneath her.

She could hear voices. Familiar voices. But they sounded as if they were underwater and she couldn't register the words that must have been coming out of their mouth. Pain swam through her entire body and she was sure her head had been separated from her shoulders. Slowly she managed to crack her eyes open slightly and turned her head and as she did a person she knew very well was hovering over her head. "Derek?" She wheezed out every breath she was taking causing a rippling pain through her chest.

"It's me Princess. Can you move?" He asked worriedly watching as her head lolled up and down as she struggled to look at him.

"I don't know… Is Reid okay? And JJ?" She asked him as she remembered the others that were in the car with her. She tried to push herself up but the pain in her body was just too much.

Derek put a gentle arm on hers. "Reid's fine he's calling an ambulance, I don't know about JJ yet" Derek said honestly flicking a glance at the unmoving blonde behind them. "Right I'm gonna get you out of here Em okay!" Derek said as he grabbed at the seat belt latch but it had been completely crushed. Oh no he mumbled inwardly as he continued to tug on the mechanism but it wouldn't budge.

"Morgan!" Reid yelled hanging over the edge of the car. "Morgan there's loads of smoke coming from the car and a fire has started round the front. You have to get them out of there" Spencer spoke with urgency as he watched helplessly at the scene in front of him. He nodded at him and kept yanking with all his might to free his partner but the belt was not moving.

"Damn it!" He growled angrily hitting the busted dashboard with the palm of his hand.

"Derek!" Emily's voice rang in his head and he turned to look at her. His adrenaline was pumping throughout him, blocking out the pain he was feeling. "Get JJ out. I'm not moving f-from this wreck y-yet" She said strongly biting back the hiss of pain that was forcing it's way out of her throat. Any little movement hurt her side and she knew why. A twisted piece of metal was embedded into her side. She didn't know how deep it was, but it hurt.

"Prentiss, you're stuck. I need to get you out!" Derek pleaded not wanting to leave her there if the car was starting to ignite.

"No. You need to g-get JJ out!" She said pushing as much strength into her voice. "I'm stuck, s-she's not, go!" She ordered trying to look directly at him but failing miserably. With a longing look at her he climbed into the back and began to undo JJ from her seat. But it seemed the movement had begun to rouse her from her head injury induced slumber. "What's… W-what's going on?" She managed to get out feeling two arms wrap around her waist and drag her up into a sitting position.

"JJ can you stand. I need to get you out of here. The cars on fire" Derek said and JJ nodded numbly as she tried to gather her bearings. On shaky legs she got to her feet coughing as smoke began to slip into the car. She gripped a hold of Derek's shoulder tightly and turned to grab a hold of the top of the car when she stopped as she heard her friends voice. "I'll be right back Emily okay, I swear I'll be right back" Derek said looking down over her and she nodded at him before beginning to feel around the car for something.

"Derek is Emily?" JJ asked eyes wide with worry but he shook his head.

"She's trapped, the belt has her jammed in. Come on JJ let's get you out" He spoke as he began to manoeuver her up and out of the car but that was difficult due to the pain they were both in and that JJ wanted to stay with Emily, unwilling to leave her in the car alone.

Emily finally found what she was looking for. Her gun. With blood covered shaky hands she looked at the seatbelt which was tight around her chest restricting her breathing. Looking at it she found a small area of the belt which had ripped and with the little focus she had she pressed the muzzle against the rough material she fired the gun. The action had the desired effect as her belt fell apart, releasing her from its clutches but that only caused more pain as her weight pressed down heavily on the metal penetrating her side.

"Emily?!" Derek yelled running around to the car once again and peeking in. He heard the gunshot but didn't have the faintest idea what had happened.

"I'm okay, I've g-got the belt off" She coughed painfully her head swimming. She knew moving would only hurt the wound to her side more but she had to get out. Smoke was filling it up and burning her eyes and her lungs and she knew she didn't have long to get out of the car.

"I'm coming in to get you!" Derek barked about to hop over into the car but her voice stopped him.

"No Derek don't. This car is going to explode any minute, I t-think I can get myself out. Get back as far as you can!" Emily yelled up at him manoeuvring herself around. She cried out in pain as she wrapped her hand around the shrapnel sticking into her side and with a firm yank pulled it out. Blood spilt freely from the wound and it coated her hands warming them up.

"Like hell I am!" Derek yelled back. He wasn't going to leave her there, he couldn't leave her there like that.

"Listen to me! Get back, I'll be out in literally a minute!" She pushed out and brought herself up into a sitting position biting back another hiss of pain.

"I'm staying here. I can ease you out. Lift your hands up and grab the window edge" He said and he could watch as she struggled up into a standing position. As soon as she did all the blood rushed from her head and she fell heavily against the side of the car, stars dancing in her eyes and everything going into double vision.

Shaking it away she grabbed onto the window edge and placed one foot on the seat. Sucking in a painful breath she heaved herself up onto the edge of the window. She could feel the smoke clogging up her lungs but she pushed up again until finally her upper body was on the outside of the car. Derek leaned over and put his arms under hers and with one big heave dragged her out of the wreckage.

Emily wrapped an arm around Morgan's shoulder to steady herself as the two hobbled over to Reid and JJ who were sat on the floor both looking like they were about to pass out. "It's going to blow, we need t-to move!" Emily got out as she grabbed a hold of Reid and Morgan grabbed JJ and the four all linked together kept moving away from the wreckage. And they were lucky they did as soon enough the car exploded. The force of the explosion forced the four agents to the ground and instinctively they all tried to protect each other from the debris that rained down around them.

"Is everyone okay?" JJ squeezed out as the wind that was knocked out of her returned. All three nodded and tried to move but found they couldn't. Adrenaline left their bodies and so all they could do was lie on the ground trying to get their bearings.

"Yeah I'm okay, I've had better days though" Emily groaned as she pressed her hand over the wound to her side. "Shit!" She mumbled as her head swam with pain from the blow and the blood loss.

"Let me see" Reid said gazing down at the wound that punctured Emily's side. Her white shirt was soaked in blood and he tried to look but she swatted his hands away. "Reid it's fine, just a flesh wound" She said through gritted teeth but her resolve was weakening as everything around her began to swim into a mass of colour and darkness. It wasn't long before her eyes were shut once again.

And when the ambulance crew arrived the first thing they all saw was four FBI agents unconscious on the ground.

**0o0o0o0o0o**

Rossi and Hotch were sat in the waiting room, waiting for any news on their team mates. They still couldn't believe that the four had been run off the road. "You think it was our Unsub?" Rossi spoke up looking at Hotch who was sipping at the disgusting hospital coffee.

"I don't doubt it, we're finally onto him. He needed to get rid of people to cover his tracks" He replied rolling the cup between his palms. It didn't matter how many times he ended up in these hospitals, it always hurt him as much as the first time. They weren't just his colleagues, they were his family.

"That's hell of a move to make" Rossi answered running a hand through his dark hair tiredly, none of them had slept in over 24 hours and it was starting to take its toll. Hotch was about to speak when a doctor emerged and walked over to them.

"Are you here for the FBI agents?" He asked and Hotch and Rossi stood producing their badges to show the man. "Well they are a lucky bunch I'll give you that. All four have concussion and have had to have stitches in their heads but it's nothing some painkillers and rest won't take care of. They've all got some nasty cuts and abrasions but again they'll be easily taken care of. Jennifer Jareau has broken her right arm in two places and has two broken ribs, Spencer Reid has whiplash and a slight strain on his neck, Derek Morgan's main injury is his head but he should be cleared to go in a few hours and Emily Prentiss has a bruised rib and a puncture wound to her side which we've stitched up and cleaned and should heal in a few days. She took a nasty blow to the head so we want to keep her and Miss Jareau in for observation overnight though we're having some trouble convincing Miss Prentiss" The doctor finished running through the list.

"Can we see them?" Hotch asked and the man nodded and walked away urging the two to follow him along the pristine hallways of the hospital. "Mr Reid and Mr Morgan are up and about, each one of them are in with the two women". The nearer they got they could hear a very familiar voice arguing with the doctors and couldn't help but smile.

"I've said I'm fine. I'm all stitched up and you've given me medication. I am not staying here overnight end of. You can't keep me here, I'm lucid and of sound mind and I am telling you in a few hours I'm walking out of this hospital" Emily argued with the young male doctor who looked absolutely terrified of the older FBI agent.

"I'm sorry Ma'am, I've had strict orders that you have to stay in for observations" He squeaked out. He couldn't wait to get out of the room.

"Well I'm giving you orders and I'm not staying here. It's as simple as that so either you hand me the discharge papers or I'll get them myself and risk more injury" She growled back and Derek was stood behind Emily an amused smile on his face. He never understood why she didn't like hospitals.

"Yes Ma'am" The young doctor caved before scurrying out of the room and nearly bumping into another doctor and two older men.

"I think I'll take JJ, you can go and join Emily" Rossi laughed hurrying forward to the next room leaving Hotch to go in and deal with an angry Emily Prentiss.

"Is the big bad Emily Prentiss afraid of hospitals" Derek joked and she turned to look at him narrowing her eyes though he couldn't take her serious with a bandage around her head and stitches in her face.

"I'm not afraid Morgan, I just don't see the point of wasting time in here, when I can do the same in the station and actually get some work done" She replied quickly and Derek would have never known she had a concussion if it wasn't for the unfocused eyes.

"That can wait till morning Prentiss" Hotch said as he entered the room and walked up to the side of the bed chuckling lightly to himself. "I'm ordering you to go back to the hotel, and I do not want to see you till at least 12pm. So that's 10 hours. And that goes for all of you" He said and Derek nodded in agreement, he wasn't going to turn down a few hours rest.

"Urgh fine" Emily groaned not happy with it, but it was better than staying in the hospital.

"How are you both feeling?" Hotch asked pulling up a seat and sitting next to Emily's bed.

"I feel like I've been on a long weekend and drank too many beers" Derek spoke honestly. His head was pounding in his skull and every movement hurt. Now he understood exactly how Emily felt a few years ago when the same thing happened to her.

"I'm not going to lie, I feel like crap. This is the second time I've been run off the road. You'd think I'd be used to it by now" She bit leaning back into the pillows that supported her back. Her side had been reduced to a dull ache and for that she was grateful, it was her head and her bruised rib that was causing her the most problems right now. Every strong breath she took in sent a stab into her right lung and her breath felt like it was rattling in her chest.

"I don't think this is something you could ever get used to Princess" Derek groaned rubbing his temples weakly. He never expected that the Unsub would do something like this, something to them. There was no sign that he was switching his targets to them.

"What happened exactly?" Hotch asked again moving closer to the bed.

"We were driving along the road towards the Rebecca Warburton's house and then this van came out of nowhere. Slammed straight into my side. I can't really remember much of it" Emily sighed rubbing her throbbing head also. Derek nodded agreeing with her statement, it was all a bit of a blur.

"Okay, well it's something. I'll go get Rossi and we'll head back to the station. Prentiss, Morgan I'm warning you I do not want to see you until 12 okay and the same goes for JJ and Reid" Hotch warned his voice warm but that underlying firmness was there.

"Yes Sir" Morgan saluted watching as their boss exited the room. As soon as he did he turned to look at Emily who had zoned out once again as she'd been doing whenever conversation stopped. "You with me Prentiss?" He asked waving his hand in front of her face and she snapped out of her little trance.

"Yeah sorry" She mumbled groggily as the painkillers began to take effect. She could see Morgan beginning to drop in the chair next to her so shaking her sore head she swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood on shaky feet. As soon as she did though her legs buckled beneath the sudden weight and she fell backwards onto the bed a small hiss of pain escaping her lips. Almost as soon as she touched the mattress her partner had made it around to her side of the bed grasping a hold of her forearms gently.

"You alright?" He asked worriedly looking at her bruised and cut up face. She nodded her head and stood once again but he eased her back down onto the bed. "No stay. I'll get you a chair" He said but she shook her head to the side. No way. Not again.

"No. You are not having an excuse to push me around again" She laughed lightly trying not to aggravate her ribs as she remembered his words the last time this had happened. A chuckle escaped him. "I'll use you as a walking stick" She said standing to full height and wrapping her arm around his strong arm as the two slowly made their way out of her room. Even after a few steps he could feel she was struggling. She was just too proud to admit it.

"Emily Prentiss any excuse to get your hands on me" He winked at her holding her arm a little tighter to make sure she wouldn't topple over. She laughed lightly as they made their way down the corridor to where JJ and Reid were hiding out.

"You wish" Emily snorted back trying to cover how true those words subconsciously were. The two just smiled at each other and walked into the room where they spotted their injured comrades. "You look how I feel" She spoke up drawing attention to them as she looked between Spencer and JJ.

JJ smiled relieved to see her friend up and moving about. She'd been told that the woman was up and arguing but seeing it herself was something she couldn't be happier about. "You should still be resting?" JJ scolded watching as she hobbled over to her. Derek, ever the gentleman grabbed a nearby chair and eased her down into it.

"Do you think she'd listen to reason" Derek spoke a smile on his bruised face.

"I'm fine. How are you two feeling?" She asked looking between Reid and JJ.

"My head hurts, and my neck, and my entire body but that isn't uncommon after a car accident" Reid said closing the book he had in his lap and looking to JJ to continue.

"I feel like ass" She laughed lightly adjusting her position in the bed. "I didn't think it was possible to hurt so many places in one go" She moaned fiddling with the hem of the blanket that covered her legs.

"Well at least we got out of the car. There would have been no chance of survival if we hadn't" Reid said casually causing the three to just look at him.

"Comforting" Emily spoke up a small smile on her face. He was so oblivious to how direct he was with his facts and his words. JJ watched as the conversation dwindled away, everyone's concussion taking their toll on all of them. She watched as Emily's eyes glazed over and her head tilting to the side as her body began to shut down.

"Em you may as well go back to the hotel, you can't even keep your eyes open. Go and rest seems as you won't stay in this hospital when you need too" JJ spoke using the motherly manner she used on Henry even though the woman was basically her superior. She wasn't thinking of her as that though, she was speaking as her friend.

"You sure?. I'll stay here with you if you want?" She asked looking at the two agents beside her.

JJ shook her head. "I've got to wait to get my arm casted, and it might take a while. I'll meet you both there" She replied and Derek and Emily nodded. JJ didn't even have to ask Derek if he was heading back to the hotel as well, there was no way he'd let the woman out of his sights.

"Okay. Let me know when you get there. I'll see you later" Emily smiled as she stood up and instantly took a hold of Derek's waiting arm. Her side was burning as she continued walking but she tried to hold the grimace off of her face. She wanted to stay there with JJ, to keep an eye on her and Reid but she knew she needed the rest, and she wanted to get out of the damn hospital.

"Prentiss you sure you don't need a chair?" Derek asked again but he got his answer as she stared at him with glazed eyes. "Sorry" He apologised with a laugh. He knew she hated being molly coddled, that she hated a fuss and wanted to get straight back to work no matter how hurt she was.

"It's okay. I think I can make it to the front doors, holding on to a big strong man" She scoffed trying to put some enthusiasm into her voice but failing miserably. And as she held onto Derek's arm, even with her concussion she couldn't help but feeling that it felt right, that it was right where she wanted to be.

**So number four guys. This was a long one but I hope you enjoyed it, I love the bonding moments the team has as much as the serious ones. I especially love the Prentiss/JJ moments, I love them together especially the scene between them two and Garcia after the episode 'The Fight' (5x18). It shows how close they are, more than the glimpses we get between episodes!.**

**Please read.**

**So I hope you enjoyed and if so please let me know. They really do help me to keep writing this story, even if it's to tell me what not to do, let me know. Because I'm pouring my blood, sweat and tears into this all for you guys, to enjoy the ride and really sink your teeth into a story.**

**I've seen a lot of story's on all fandoms, Eastenders, Criminal Minds, Torchwood, Merlin etc with ten chapters and like 9k words, and I've topped that in three chapters, yet they have more reviews. A story shouldn't be taken on how fast the updates are, but the quality of writing and layering and storytelling. It might just be me as I'm an English A level and University student and love poetry and well thought out story's and classic literature such as Wuthering Heights, Sense and Sensibility, Jane Eyre, Great Expectations, LOTR & The Hobbit, A Game Of Thrones (Book not Tv show, though I love the TV show).**

**I always take the time to tell everyone how I feel about their writing style, and how they can improve. I never flame them as I feel it's cruel and nasty, but if they want to write I want to give them the guidance to unlock the full potential that I know they have, they just need the words of wisdom and confidence to do something about it. I look back at my writing when I was fourteen and I cringe at the quality, we have all been there, but I had these people telling me how to improve, how to truly write to a high standard and it has really helped me mature in a writing style.**

**So let me know guys, this is for you. All of you. Whether you followed, reviewed or favourite I thank you for the support, the words of kindness. You push me to keep going and to keep updating because I wouldn't have gotten here without everyone. So give yourselves a clap on the back because you deserve it.**

**Big loving all, from a humble Welsh girl who wants to bring you the happiness that you all want.**

**Big loving.**

**Gwen!.**


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